Duane

“One of the dictums that defines our culture is that we can be anything we want to be – to win the neoliberal game we just have to dream, to put our minds to it, to want it badly enough. This message leaks out to us from seemingly everywhere in our environment: at the cinema, in heart-warming and inspiring stories we read in the news and social media, in advertising, in self-help books, in the classroom, on television. We internalize it, incorporating it into our sense of self. But it’s not true. It is, in fact, the dark lie at the heart of the age of perfectionism. It’s the cause, I believe, of an incalculable quotient of misery. Here’s the truth that no million-selling self-help book, famous motivational speaker, happiness guru or blockbusting Hollywood screenwriter seems to want you to know. You’re limited. Imperfect. And there’s nothing you can do about it.”
― Will Storr, Selfie: How We Became So Self-Obsessed and What It's Doing to Us

“We still don’t like the things we don’t like –we just cease to be at war with them. And once the war is over, change can begin.”
― Susan David, Emotional Agility: Get Unstuck, Embrace Change and Thrive in Work and Life

“Alexithymia isn’t a clinical diagnosis, but it is a difficulty that millions of people struggle with every day. And it carries very real costs. Trouble labelling emotions is associated with poor mental health, dissatisfaction in jobs and relationships, and plenty of other ills. People with this condition are also more likely to report physical symptoms like headaches and backaches. It’s as if their feelings are being expressed physically rather than verbally. It’s also true that sometimes, when people can’t clearly express their feelings in words, the only emotion that comes through loud and clear is anger, and the unfortunate way they express it is by putting a fist through the wall – or worse.”
― Susan David, Emotional Agility: Get Unstuck, Embrace Change and Thrive in Work and Life

“Courage is not an absence of fear; courage is fear walking.”
― Susan David, Emotional Agility: Get Unstuck, Embrace Change and Thrive in Work and Life